Three-on-Three! Jason and Silus, Together Again!
A Chance Meeting Jason Reid was sitting on a bench inside the Pokémon Center, his eyes glued to a television screen which appeared to be showing a Pokémon Battle. "So fast! Infernape is looking as good as ever, scoring a direct hit with it's signature Mach Punch!" On the screen, Jason could see the Pokémon known as Infernape. With it's flaming crown, it looked powerful. He rummaged for his Pokédex, flipping it open to look up this new Pokémon. "Infernape, the Flame Pokémon and the evolved form of Monferno. Infernape's fiery crown reflects its fiery nature, and its speed is unmatched." "So...that's what Silus is going to have when his Monferno evolves..." Jason mused, remembered his encounter with the fiery Pokémon. "...but she refuses to back down, intent on defending her title as Champion Master of the Sinnoh League!" Due to Jason's brief attention slip, he nearly missed what the announcer was saying, and returned in time to see a young woman with long blue hair on the monitor, grinning as she commanded her Pokémon. "And Garchomp makes it's move, weaving through the rock formations like a Seviper, it's blinding speed makes it hard to keep track of, and even Infernape is at a loss!" The announce continued the play-by-play as the Garchomp seemingly vanished from sight. "Garchomp, Dragon Rush!" The woman ordered, and Garchomp's figure quickly became visible as it had taken to the air, it's head appendages glowing as it coated itself in a light blue aura, before making a dive downward, trailing streaks of the same colour. "And it hits home!" The announcer shouted as Garchomp's Dragon Rush collided with Infernape, slamming into it with such force that when the Pokémon was thrown back and collided with the wall, the structure shattered as Infernape plowed through it, falling unconscious. "Infernape is down! Flint, the Fire Master of the Elite Four, has been defeated by our reigning Champion, Dawn, who has once again maintained her position as Champion of the Sinnoh League!" "So that was the Dawn that the Professor was talking about..." Misty made presence known by speaking directly into Jason's ear, causing the boy to jump off the bench in surprise. "D-don't sneak up on me like that!" Jason snapped. "Still scare easy, don't you Jase?" Jason heard a female voice, ripe with smugness, and quickl saw who it was connected to. "Oh, Amelia." He frowned. Last thing he needed was a teasing by this girl. "Why are you even here?" Amelia smirked, walking over to Jason and jabbing him in the forehead. "Last I checked, these Centers were open to all trainers, not just idiots clad in red." "Why you...!" Jason's eye twitched; Amelia knew how to push all of his buttons. He reached for a Poké Ball. "You wanna have a go!?" Amelia grinned. "Sure, I'd love to wipe the Pokémon Center floor with you!" "You will not." Nurse Joy immediately stepped between the two bickering children, pushing them apart. "Pokémon are not tools to settle your petty little disputes. Put those Poké Balls away or I will report you to the League authorities." "...tch..." The two seemed to be in agreement that the Nurse had just overstepped her bounds, but complied, putting their Poké Balls away. "That's better." The Nurse sighed with relief. "Jason, your Pichu is all healed, you can come down to retrieve it when you're ready. Your Pokémon have been patched up as well, Amelia." Jason, Amelia, and Misty descended the stairs, heading to the reception counter to receive their Pokémon back. Pichu immediately jumped on Jason's shoulder, it's usual perch. "Where's Ivory?" Misty looked around, trying to find their companion. "She's over there, talking to that boy and his friends." Nurse Joy pointed over by one of the video phones, where Ivory was talking to a boy with ridiculously spiky hair, oddly enough like a Qwilfish, and his two friends. Jason's brain registered this appearance as someone he knew. "Hey! Silus!" He called over to the boy, running in his direction, leaving Misty and Amelia standing at the reception counter. Silus had just taken a Pokéball off of the transporter when Ivory had come over to speak to him. It was a rest day, in between the P1 Grand Prix's first matches, which were yesterday, and the semifinals, which were tomorrow. Stashing the Pokéball along with his others, Silus looked up to speak to the newcomer, when he noticed someone shouting his name and tunneling straight towards him. "Hey Silus," Lyra noted, watching from beside him. "Isn't that Jason?" "Jason?" Nathan asked, confused. "Who's that?" "Jason is Silus' rival and vice versa." Lyra explained to the younger boy. "Every time they meet, you can bet its going to be an amusing, yet interesting, confrontation." "Hey Jase!" Silus shouted incredulously. "I didn't know you were in town! What're ya still doing in this neck of the woods?" He then caught sight of the other female who was walking behind Jason, looking both haughty and slightly confused at the shout-fest that was taking place. Between the two groups, a small crowd had formed, with Silus' two friends, and Jason's three gathering together for a roundabout greeting. "Eh, long story short, we stopped by the research institute." Jason shrugged. "We decided to sleep here before leaving. If I hadn't turned on the TV and saw the Sinnoh League Conference on TV, we may have left a bit earlier, but I had to watch it." "Wait, you know each other?" Ivory asked, surprised. "Yeah, this is another friend of mine Ivory, his name is Silus." Jason introduced the Qwilfish-headed boy to his most recent companion. "Silus, this is Ivory. She joined with us only a little while back, so you never did get a chance to meet her." "Nice to meet ya!" Silus smiled broadly. "Likewise, Jason, you haven't met Nathan here. He's the kid brother of Monkshood Town's Gym Leader, Cable. He decided to come along with Lyra and I." "I'm surprised, Jason." Lyra interrupted, pushing herself to the front of the crowd. "I didn't see your name in the roster for the local P1 Grand Prix. I thought you'd jump at the opportunity to compete in a tournament like that." "Yeah!" Silus chimed in again. "Lyra, Nathan, and I are all in the semifinals tomorrow." Jason chuckled, a bit embarrassed. "Well, I don't have any Pokémon suited for that kind of contest. None of my Pokémon are Fighting-type, or know any Fighting-type moves. Add to the fact that we got lost in a sandstorm..." Jason trailed off. Misty immediately swooped in. "Either way, it's nice to see everyone again, and it's nice to meet you Nathan." "Oi!" Amelia butted into the conversation. "Am I suddenly not here?" "I usually think that way." Jason smirked, his mood lifting again. "You little..." Amelia hissed, but then turned to Silus. "It's nice to meet you Silus, I'm Jason's friend from childhood. I'm where all of his lunch money went." Silus sweat-dropped. Jason definitely surrounded himself with a bunch of spunky females. "Nice to meet you too, Amelia." he replied, shaking her hand in a friendly manner. "Good to see you again, Misty." "Yes, its very good to see you again." Lyra replied, walking up next to Misty. "One more day with this airhead, and I was going to have to pull all my fine hair out. With you here, at least someone can relate to me." "You take that back!" Silus shouted, waving his fist in mock anger. "Well, since you're all back together," Nathan noted. "What're we gonna do? We have the whole day." "I know." Silus replied, grinning mischievously while turning to Jason. "Its been awhile since our last battle, Jace. What'do'ya say? Wanna have a go?" "Took the words out of my mouth." Jason's grin was one of excitement. "I was about to ask before everyone got all high-school-reunion on us." The Rivals' Rematch! The large group exited from the back door of the Center, heading outside to the battle field that every Pokémon Center seemed to conveniently have. "So what's the terms of the battle?" Jason asked as they each took a side on the field and the girls and Nathan went to the benches. "Three-on-three sound good?" "Sounds great!" Silus replied. "I've been wanting to test out a new strategy of mine. But let's amend the rules a bit. It'll be three-on-three, with no substitutions. First one to lose all three is the loser, and don't expect to beat me so easily this time!" Lyra took up her seat next to Nathan in the bleachers nearby, "Watch carefully, Nathan. This is a good thing for you to see as a beginning trainer." she reminded him. "My eyes are glued on the field. This should be good!" Nathan chirped excitably. Misty stood up, walking over to the edge of the field. "Alright boys, I'm going to be your referee. This will be a three-on-three battle with no subsitutions! The first trainer to defeat all three Pokémon is the winner! When you're ready....begin!" "Alright, let's get started!" Silus shouted excitedly, snatching a Pokéball from his waste and enlarging it with a touch of the central button. "Alright, center stage, Raichu!" Silus sent the ball flying onto the field, which then erupted in a brilliant display of light energy, landing on the field and reforming into a large, orangish rodent Pokémon — Raichu! "Rai! Rai!" Raichu cried excitedly upon seeing Jason again, "Chuuuu!" "Good... looks like all that trainin' I sent it to do in Mimosa City after Jason and I's last match has made it a lot more confident." Silus thought to himself. "Raichu here has participated in all three of our matches so far, Jason. Let's see how much he's improved!" "Oh, he has a Raichu as well?" Amelia looked excited. "This should be fun." "Piiichuuuu...." Pichu glared at Raichu from over Jason's shoulder, it's little electric sacs sparking. "No Pichu, not this time." Jason tried to calm the Tiny Mouse Pokémon. "I have a different friend who I want to give a turn." Jason reached for a Poké Ball, throwing it high into the air where it opened with a massive POP!, releasing a bright white light which hit the ground, forming into a Phanpy. "Say hello to a friend of mine, Silus." Jason smile as Phanpy's ears fluttered happily. "Phanpy doesn't have quite the resumé your Raichu has, in fact, this is it's first battle. But I'm gonna count on a bit of beginner's luck." "Isn't that...reckless?" Misty sighed. To be truthful, she wanted to smack Jason for using Phanpy in this battle, but, as referee, had to remain impartial. "Round One! Raichu vs Phanpy! Begin!" Round One "Phanpy, huh? I've heard Ryan speak of 'em. They're native to Johto mainly, I believe. Guess you can find 'em here too." Silus surmised. "No doubt, Jason is attempting to use Phanpy's Ground-type to negate Raichu's electrical attacks. Too bad for him." "Rai!" Raichu chirped, electrical sparks jolting from the sacs on its cheeks. "Alright, Raichu!" Silus commanded. "Let's give them a shocking performance! Use !" "Rai!" Raichu cried, its tail glowing bright white. "CHU!" Leaping forward, Raichu swept its tail in a large arc, aiming to smack Phanpy right across the face with a super effective Steel-type Iron Tail. "Phanpy, dodge it with Rollout!" Jason commanded and Phanpy immediately curled into a spiralling ball, the spiralling motions increasing it's speed as it quite literally fled from Raichu's Iron Tail. the attack missing as the Long Nose Pokémon dashed past it, towards the edge of the field. "Good, now turn back, and head right for Raichu!" Jason enthusiastically delivered the order to Phanpy, who skidded along the edge before making a U-turn back towards Raichu, barreling down at immense speed. "Just as I thought. Using the Ground-type attacks to its advantage." Silus thought, "But you'll have to do better than that! Counter Rollout with an Iron Tail in Counter Shield formation! Go Raichu!" "Rai!" Raichu cried in unison with his trainer. Spinning into a ball, much like Phanpy had just done, Raichu's tail once more began to glow white with Iron Tail. As it spun, the ball that was its body became completely white, forming a ball just like the " " Jason's Pichu had improvised in their last battle. "This is a trick I learned from you!" Silus declared, "Now, forward Raichu!" The spinning ball of light that was Raichu's Counter Shield-Iron Tail combination spun forward, attempting to clash with Phanpy's Rollout head on. "Phanpy, make a leap!" Jason ordered, and Phanpy propelled it's rolling body into the air, the Rollout making the speed and power of it's jump tremendous as it soared over the spinning Raichu. "You'll need more than a borrowed bag of tricks to beat me, Silus. Phanpy, Water Gun, and use it on the ground!" "Water Gun!?" Amelia called out incredulously from the sidelines. "How can you ask it to use a move it can't learn!?" "You'd be surprised." Ivory kept her eyes on Jason's battle, but kept talking. "Quite a few Pokémon can learn unique moves by birth that they can't learn as they grow. This Phanpy may have just hatched before Jason caught it." Phanpy unfurled itself in mid-air, extending it's small trunk forward. "Phaaaaaaaaanpy!" It cried, releasing a medium-sized stream of water not at Raichu, but towards the dirt ground in front of it, softening it and creating a slippery, mud-like substance. "And that's our opening!" Silus announced, "Up Raichu! Electricity is conducted by water. Even muddy water like that. And since the stream is directly connect to Phanpy through Water Gun, its a sure hit! Use Thunder!" "Raiiiii!" the mouse Pokémon snarled, gathering electricity in its cheek pouches. "CHUUUU!" Raichu came out of its spinning formation, unleashing several mighty bolts of electrical energy. This landed directly on Phanpy's muddy water, lighting it up in a frenzy of an electrical light show, which traveled up the stream of water from Phanpy's snout, right to the source. The result was a spectuclar display of electricity as the attack connected with the descending Phanpy...however, the results were far from favourable. Phanpy crashed into the ground, twitching slightly, but it managed to stand back up and seemed absolutely unphased by the Thunder attack. "Water might conduct an electrical move and strengthen it, but no matter how strong you make it, an Electric-type move is never going to damage a Ground-type." Jason goaded. "Nice try though, Qwilfish head!" "It was a smart try, but that would have been more effective on an actual Water-type." Ivory agreed. "Phanpy, one more time, let's try Rollout!" Phanpy curled into it's ball shape and began to spin, charging forward to mow down the Raichu. "Quilfish head, eh?! I'll get you for that." Silus snarled, somewhat annoyed. "I applaud your craftiness, but this is it! It still won't change your odds! Raichu stand your ground and use Iron Tail to bat it away! Use your weight to get an advantage!" "Rai!" Raichu agreed. For the third time, Raichu gathered white energy on its tail, crouching into the ground in order to hold its position. As soon as Phanpy was in range, Raichu focused all its strength into its tail, and swiped at the rolling ball that was Jason's Pokémon like a bat at a baseball, slamming its Iron Tail into the opponent, hoping to send it flying. "Phan!" The small Pokémon collided with the force of the Iron Tail and was sent careening backwards, twitching from the pain of the powerful move. "Phanpy! Can you get up!?" Jason asked deperately. "Phaaaaaaaaan!" Phanpy forced itself to it's feet, glaring at Raichu with it's determination. "That's the way!" Jason grinned. "Now, Phanpy, show it your power! Earthquake!" Phanpy reared onto it's hind legs, before smashing it's forelegs into the ground, causing the entire battlefield to tremble and shake in an unavoidable Earthquake. "Earthquake?!" Silus thought, shocked. "Alright Raichu, things are going to get sketchy, but hang in there! Use Iron Tail on the ground to assist with your jump!" Raichu's still glowing tail, struck the ground, helping Raichu leap into the air, high over the battlefield. "With Raichu in the air, Earthquake can't hit it, but it has to come down. So here's my chance to strike! I'll use my strategy and Raichu's heavier weight to my advantage!" Silus pondered. "Now Raichu, one last Iron Tail-Counter Shield formation!" While still in midair, Raichu spun itself into a ball, which quickly began to glow as it raced down towards Phanpy, picking up speed as it raced downwards. Even if Phanpy dodged, it would have to relent Earthquake to do so, meaning Raichu would be safe, hit or miss. "Phanpy! We're not through yet! Let's try and mimic what he's been so graciously showing off!" Jason was actually nervous about attempting this technique; only Aipom had ever had any practice with this before. "Let's combine Rollout with Water Gun, use the spinning to bat Raichu away!" "Phaaaaanpy!" Phanpy stopped the Earthquake, and curled into a sphere once more, spinning in place very quickly, before emitting a powerful jet of water that began to spin with Phanpy, sending out powerful bursts into the air. Unlike Silus' variations, which were all far more controlled, Phanpy's water was going wild, however it still provided a defense — Phanpy was copying the Counter Shield. This was successful. Raichu was struck by several tendrils of water and thrown back, landing on all fours near Silus. It gritted its teeth in anger and frustration, which was further shown by the sparks that were flying from the pouches on its cheeks. "This is bad..." Silus thought. "Phanpy can only be affected by one of Raichu's attacks and so far, I can't exactly land a hit with it. Wait! That's it! I might have a way to knock it out, but I need an opening. So... Raichu leaped out of the way of a few more wild, out-of-control water whips, and then looked to Silus for orders. "Raichu, hang tight! He may be able to resist a direct hit from our electrical attacks, but we've got other tricks up our sleeves! Use Electro Ball on the field!" Silus commanded. "Raichu!" the mouse Pokémon shouted in agreement. Forming a ball of electrical energy on its tail, Raichu leaped up and launched the ball of electricity at the ground, causing a sizable explosion and sending a large cloud of rocky debris into the air. "That's it!" Silus shouted. "Now! Use Iron Tail like a bat! Send the debris right at it!" Raichu's tail began to glow yet again, and the mouse Pokémon leaped up swatting the rocks at Phanpy at record speeds, forcing back the wisps of water and, with any luck, would soon overwhelm the inexperienced Pokémon with a barrage of stone. "Phanpy, increase the speed!" Jason ordered and Phanpy began to spin faster, every stone that collided knocking itself away, flying off in random directions. However, even with the stones batted away, Phanpy stopped it's rolling, looking tired. "Phan...Phaaan..." "Phanpy's getting exhausted...it can't take much more battling..." Ivory looked worried. Jason wasn't blind to this, but the rule was a no-substitution, and this most likely extended to recalling as well. "Phanpy, it's nearly over! Can you hang in there for a bit longer?" "Phan!" Phanpy trumpeted it's cry into the air, determined, despite it's fatigue, to take this down to the wire. "Phanpy, use Rollout, and weave around Raichu, now!" Jason commanded, and Phanpy cried out with gusto as it launched itself forward into a Rollout, before circling Raichu with immense speed, never stopping to give the Electric Mouse a clear hit. "Oh no you don't!" Silus thought, a sinister grin coming over his face as he folded his arms. "Raichu, let's wrap this up in our next couple of moves. Use Thunder on all four corners of the battlefield." "RAI...CHUUUUU!" the mouse Pokémon shrieked. Four immense bolts of electricity launched from Raichu's body, landing on each of the four painted corners of the outside battle arena. The explosion that came next send dust and dirt flying into the air, covering the entire battlefield with an immense cloud of debris — not only limiting the vision of Phanpy, but also of Jason, to see where Phanpy was. "Phanpy's inexperience is showing." Silus deduced. "Its still a baby, and this is its first battle. The truth is, it probably wouldn't have made it this far if it weren't for its type advantage, and that's what Jason's counting on. Now I've cut it off from its trainer. Even if Phanpy can ''hear Jason, it can't see him, or Raichu for that matter. Raichu, on the other hand, saw what direction it was headed when it whizzed right by him. So, I'll make a gamble. Phanpy will probably be confused with all the dust and debris, and will either slow down to get its bearings, or stop spinning altogether. And that's all the opening I need!" "Raichu, use Iron Tail, Counter Shield formation! Aim for the direction Phanpy spun! GO!" Silus commanded. Raichu curled up in a ball, glowing white as he had done numerous times already, and spun with raw speed in the same direction Phanpy had headed, aided by the thick blanket of debris that now covered the field. "Phanpy! Stop moving now, and listen! This cloud can only limit you so much, make use of your ears and take in every sound you can!" Jason ordered as loud as he could, the sound of his voice reaching to Phanpy through the smoke cloud, and it stopped, raising it's ears to take in every sound. "Wait and listen!" Phanpy obeyed, closing it's eyes in the cloud as it began to hear sounds it hadn't noticed before, the size of it's ears particularly helpful in picking up faint vibrations. "If you can hear it, ''brace yourself!" Jason urged as Phanpy plainly heard this instruction, and heard the vibrations of Raichu's own spinning as it suddenly came into plain view, glinting from the Iron Tail. The sensation rocked Phanpy's body as the spiralling Iron Tail collided, sending a massive wave of pain that causes Phanpy to cry out, alerting Jason. "Phanpy's on it's last legs....however, with that sound, Raichu cannot be too far away, in fact, it has to be close. And, while Phanpy may be tired, it wants to win as much as I do. It's all or nothing with this last one!" Jason clenched his fist. "Phanpy, use Earthquake!" Unseen from inside the smokescreen of debris and dust, Phanpy had stomped onto the ground, using it's last bit of energy to smash into the dirt, causing the entire battlefield to rumble and quake, firmly intent on making it's last stand. Unfortunately for Phanpy, however, Silus heard Jason's command and for what was to happen next, sight wouldn't be required on Raichu's part. "Alright Raichu, this is the end! Iron Tail-enhanced jump!" Silus barked out. Raichu, still blinded by the cloud of dirt, enhanced its tail with Iron Tail and slammed the tail into the ground, leaping high into the air over both the battlefield and the smokescreen of debris. With it in the air, Earthquake couldn't touch it, and it had one last shot of ending the battle. "Now, Thunder on the field!" Silus followed up. Releasing for more bolts of Thunder, Raichu aimed the powerful electrical attack at the battlefield, this time uprooting larger rocks, which were launched into the air. Once these rocks reached a certain height, gravity took hold, and they began to rain down on the battlefield... and Phanpy, who was wide open. Scoreboard